Archive for August, 2009

I know we don’t write as often as we should, but we’re in the process of inventing a day with 48 hours instead of 24. Then, maybe, we will have time to do all the things that we want to do everyday. Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to yet.

Eddie and Julie stayed with us for a week. We managed to take some time off to do a few things with them, such as a visit to Cape Tribulation and Cooktown through the Blooomfield Track, a visit to Lake Morris for lunch or, my favourite, a visit to Ochre Restaurant, in Cairns. This restaurant is a must for everyone, as least once in their lifetime. We went, again, for the Australian Platter, and tasted the best crocodile, emu and kangaroo ever amongst other delicacies, such as king fish with beetroot sauce or damper to be dipped in delicious native dukkha and oil.

The Bloomfield Track was amazing, beautiful scenery and not another soul. We even saw a crocodile sunbathing on a log when we were crossing the Bloomfield river. At the beginning we thought it was a fake croc that the locals had put there to impress tourists. But we managed to get a bit closer and as soon as we were too close the croc jumped into the water. Lucky for us, I guess.

Our underwater camera rental business is getting bigger and bigger. Now that we have a second model of camera to rent, the Canon Powershot G10, we’re busy designing new posters, flyers, etc. And making sure all the hostels and hotels in Cairns know about this new product we’re offering. We predict a huge success.

But what’s really really exciting in our lives right now is the fantastic news we have a few weeks ago and it’s that in mid February we’re going to have a baby. Yes, a real one!!! We still don’t know whether it’s a boy or a girl, but whatever comes will be more than welcome. I cannot wait, mostly because the nausea hasn’t stopped after the three month period, as everyone said it would. I’m trying to put up with it as best as I can, but putting up with the nausea and tiredness as well as with Steve is getting a bit too much some days, haha.

Al, I didn’t forget you mate. I just wanted to get my last blog entry up as quickly as possible so people could check out one of our new websites. It’s still under construction, but it’s a start… check out driving on the Bloomfield Track.

Now… a few days before Eddie and Julie arrived, Maria and I were enjoying a *rare* leisurely Saturday morning out shopping. We were driving the Cairnsunlimitedmobile along Mulgrave Road when an old 4WD pulled alonside us and the bearded driver called out “Hey is that you Steve??”

Bugger me if it wasn’t Alistair, an English guy I knew when I was living in a small village south of London over five years ago. He had just driven from Brisbane and the first car he saw upon reaching Cairns was ours… the bright blue and multicoloured artwork temporarily blinded him and caused him to swerve wildly. When he regained his sight he remembered that a mutual friend had told him of my business called Cairns Unlimited.

Al stayed at our place that night, and needless to say there were headaches all round the next morning.

It’s been eight months since Maria and I had a night off, so we reckoned we were well due for a break. Our friends Eddie and Julie were visiting from Brisbane and that was all the excuse we needed. North of Cape Tribulation, there’s a 4WD track called the Bloomfield Track, which runs all the way to Cooktown. I had been keen to explore the Bloomfield Track for some time now.

Last week, it was finally my chance. We four bundled into our brand new (rented) Toyota Rav4 and hit the road Wednesday morning. Didn’t think you could drive a rental car on the Bloomfield Track? Well, you haven’t been paying attention to our Cairns car hire page…

After stopping for a coffee and a muffin in our favourite Port Douglas cafe, it was north to the Daintree River. Crossing the mighty Daintree by ferry always gives you the feeling of isolation; like you’ve travelled so far that there’s not even bridges over rivers any more. But in fact, it’s little more than ninety minutes from Cairns.

Once across the Daintree, we soon found ourseoves at our accommodation for the night, Crocodylus Village Resort at Cow Bay. There were no double rooms left, but we were offered an unbeatable deal on two adjacent dorm rooms, each wioth two double bunks. The accommodation was basic - shared bathrooms nearby - but sufficient. And it was quite an experience, sleeping in a cabin in the middle of the lush rainforest, woken by the early morning call of the Daintree Rainforest birdlife.

Crocodylus is well equipped with a cozy bar, onsite restaurant and spacious undercover dining area. We all enjoyed our dinner and were ready for an early night after a few glasses of red wine.

After a hearty breakfast we wasted no time getting to the end of the sealed road at Cape Tribulation, and slowed our pace for the famous Bloomfield Track. I won’t go into great detail here, but instead will use this as an excuse to introduce a new website which we are building, specifically devoted to The Bloomfield Track. For now, you’ll just have to make do with a few photos from the journey…